Explosive charge for guns.



No. 653,208. Patented July [0, i900. J. H snowu. EXPLOSIVE CHARGE FORGUNS (Application filed Sept. 6, 1899.)

(No EAode-l.)

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EEIPEEJZFZGATIQZF forming yer: of Letters Ell-1193i No. 853,208;rla'teri July 1%, l fiill ip'plicetion i165. Sep'iem'ner 6,1899. Seriali's'o.'729,802,. l\ o YHGllGl-l To @"Z whom it may 80731367? '1 ii-ownElia-i l, JOEL H. .3520 f e 31 Stores, a E countf erizs P 21'-,lieveinve..-iefiu 'vuiul useful I Q rGuns,

l smokeless or 1: powder, commonly eulierl---l1arallere 1121- buoy oiwater ilelo. separated the Downer.

a Wish.

um conditions of elimate u ste noes izo in); other gredienie Wibii thewelt-er or iutrouoe the surround .1.

boclyof wziterclielnieally oomuinei with other materials. For instance,if freezing were to be avoided, glycerin might be mingled with. theWater.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a section of one formwhich the explosive charge may assume when inserted, in a gun; and Fi m2, 3, and 1 represent, respeo eiveiy, a vent-plug before if.- lras beensubjected to the pressure of an expio ied charge, a similar vent-plugoffer it, been subjec r' io the pressure of an ordinary exploded charge,and a similar vent-plug after it has beensubj eeted to the pressure ofan exploied ohm e containing a body oi water.

in oarrying my invention into eileot l introduce iuro the body of theexplosive mate rial ii composed, for exuinple of rods or grains ofpowderono or more small bottles or other vessels B, containing simplyveier or mixture of Water and some other subvessel or vessels containingthe made of lllLlLBIl-H HS, for example oil, rubber, or eelluioii'Lwhich will 3 lllll}, burn or under the he? an. (1 r yum) anal f"fi"= 1-oi" the exploded powder, liierel the "ooriy of Water to the in tense andconverting it re bur ing powder water materially increases the g-ressureproluoeli o tile "burning powileiyand the units of heat which. areheretofore been absorbezi by the g'uu-burrel are to a wee: extentutilized in converting the water mm vapor and gas, one or both. Thishese teuileuoy Lo keep the temperature of Eli: gun-barrel low, and thesooeilec scoring which takes place under the heat and high pressures incommon use is oimost entirely avoided. To bring the result more forciblyto the-observation, I imve'introziuoeci in iiiie siren-rings full-sizeduoeure-te illustrations of three Von plugs made from the some bar ofsteel and PYOVlClGil originally openings of exacilyuhe same size. ofmesa plugs (denoteal by C) illustrates the plug it appears beforeejected to use, its 0 being Lhe size it was originally mode.

he plug 3) shows its vent (1 about four times size of ihe original; tireincrease 'beiug clue charge of powder containing a body oi Water andproclueing (L-pressure substeufiially equal to the pressure of thecharge which scored the pl D, the vent in this instance showing only aslight inorease iu -size uet more than. one and one-halif its originalsize-under the scoring, action of the escaping gases.

1 have obtained the most satisfactory re suits by making the body f waler about twenty-five per cent. by Weight, of the amount of smokelesspowder anal about twelve and one-hulf per cent. oi theamouutofblaclz'powder used the charge. For eza mple e charge eoeiposerl oftwelve ounces of smokeless pow- Without waiter therein proiiuoefi a e.internal pressure of thirty five thousand pounds to the square inch andproduced the scoring illustrated in plug 1), While the same amount ofsmokeless powder of some kind, with three ounces of water ineeri-eo'tiierei produced an internal pressure of thirty-six thousand 'LWOhundred pouucle to the more inch and produced the slight scoringrepresented in plu'gll. Again, owon try-four ounoes of black powderwithout the water therein procluoecl on internal pressureof eighteenthousand pounds to the square inch with three ounces of Water thereinprod ueerl rm in ternalpressure of twenty-five thousand seven Lundredpounds to the square inch, and the temperature of the test-cylinder wasabout forty per cent. less than it was where the water was not used. Ido not,however, wish to limit myself to these proportions, as they maybe materially varied in connection with different grades of powder andto produce different internal pressures. The position of the body ofwater relatively to the explosive is,

however, of very great importance. The casing which contains thewateashould bewholly subjected to the intense heat of the charge, sothat it may be completely melted, burned, or shattered and the waterinstantly acted upon in small subdivisions. This will prevent thefouling of the gun and will insure the effectual change of the waterinto steam and its component gases.

The explosive charge made up as set forth above may he used for bothsmall'arms and cannon for propelling shells and torpedoes and whereverit is found desirable to obtain a high pressure by an explosive in aninclosed chamber for propelling a projectile and at the the explosivematerial and subject to the heat and pressure of the explosive materialto be broughtinto intimate contact therewith, substantially as setforth.

water being normally held out of contact with In testimony that I claimthe foregoing as my inventionI have signed my name, in presence of twowitnesses, this 6th day of September, 1899.

JOHN H. BROWN.

Witnesses:

Jos. H. BLACKWOOD, WM. R. BLAcKwoon.

